NIRVANA: 20th-Anniversary Edition Of 'In Utero' Due In September

To say that NIRVANA's third and ultimately final studio album "In Utero" was 1993's most polarizing record would be the understatement of a decade. The unadorned sonic rawness of Steve Albini's recording laid bare every primal nuance of the most confrontational yet vulnerable material Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl would ever record. And with its 1991 predecessor, "Nevermind", having sold some 30 million copies, singlehandedly returning honest rock 'n' roll to the top of the pop charts, "In Utero" was essentially the first record NIRVANA would make with any expectations from the public. So from the opening quasi-shamble melodics of "Serve The Servants" through the bittersweet closing strains of "All Apologies", "In Utero" was the sound of the most incredible yet conflicted rock 'n' roll band of the era at the peak of its powers coming to terms with a generational spokes-band mantle they'd never seen coming-and ultimately surmounting these struggles to make the record they needed to make. As Rolling Stone's David Fricke said in his review at the time, "'In Utero' is a lot of things-brilliant, corrosive, enraged and thoughtful, most of them all at once. But more than anything, it's a triumph of the will."

Universal Music Enterprises will commemorate the 20th anniversary of the unwitting swansong of the single most influential artist of the 1990s with a multi-format release that spreads more than 70 remastered, remixed, rare, unreleased and live recordings over configurations ranging from a 3-CD/1-DVD Super Deluxe Edition to a standard digital/CD remaster of the original album. Material exclusive to the various versions of the "In Utero 20th Anniversary" reissue will include a veritable treasure trove of never-before-heard demos, B-sides, compilation tracks, and live material featuring the final touring lineup of Cobain, Novoselic, Grohl, and Pat Smear... including the long-awaited release of the complete "Live And Loud" show from Seattle's Pier 48 on December 13, 1993. Additionally, a standalone single-disc DVD of the complete "Live And Loud" show along with several never-before-released bonus performances will also be released on September 24.

With the exception of "You Know You're Right", a previously unreleased cut that appeared on the box set "With The Lights Out", "Nevermind" producer Butch Vig told The Pulse Of Radio a while back that he didn't think there was much music left in the NIRVANA vaults. "It's a shame that there's — you know, that's like the last maybe great track," he said. "There's still a few raw things I know that haven't come out yet. But there's not a lot of stuff left out there that's as good as that."